Local golfers ready for ASGA Junior Match

Eight local golfers will be among the field for the Arkansas State Golf Association's Junior Match Play Championship starting today at Foxwood Country Club in Jacksonville.

Summar Roachell, 13, of Conway returns for her second try in the girls tournament. She qualified fourth last year but lost her first-round match to Courtney Burris of Springdale, 4 and 3.

The boys field will include Stewart Clark, Matthew Dail, Ethan King, Austen Moix, Matt Russell and Jack Treat of Conway and Landon Hearnes of Mayflower. Moix is the only returner to the match play bracket; he qualified 32nd for the field of 64 last year with a 78 but lost his first-round match to Joshua Kazanovicz of El Dorado.

Roachell said she hoped to improve on her qualifying score of 85 from her Junior Match debut.

"I'm just going to try to get in the field," she said.

Once in the bracket, she would have more experience with the match play format after her play in the Tri States Junior Competition. She went 2-1 in three matches at Hot Springs Country Club earlier this month, including winning her singles pairing with the top golfer on Mississippi's team.

"You've got to just play like you're going to beat the course and let it all play out how it's going to go," she said. "If the person beats you with birdies, there's not much you can do about that. You've just got to play your game and see what they do."

MAGGIO'S GOAL

Conway's Mary Michael Maggio, who finished 12th in the Rolex Girls Junior Championship on Friday, has one more chance to try to reach her goal of making the Canon Cup team.

Eight golfers will be chosen for East and West teams based on the Polo Golf Rankings as of June 27. Maggio stands 12th among the West girls with 24.25 points. She would need to move past Rachel Morris, 28.95; Erynne Lee, 31.44; Danielle Frasier, 31.97; and Jennifer Johnson, 41.68.

"I've got one more tournament to do that," Maggio said.

ASGA RESULTS

Adam Carpenter of Little Rock won the first Arkansas State Golf Association junior designated event of the year, the Greater Little Rock Junior Championship at War Memorial Park, by surviving a two-hole playoff with Conway's Austen Moix after both golfers shot 63-65128 during regulation.

Other local results from that tournament were Tim Netherton, 28th at 71-75146; Ethan King, 32nd at 75-72147; Austin Smith of Greenbrier, 37th at 76-73149; and Nick Brady, 47th at 77-77154.

Chase Netherton of Conway finished fourth in the 12-year-old division at 79-83162. Conley Hurst of Little Rock won at 78-73151.

Roachell finished second in the girls tournament, four strokes behind Taylor Fisher of Hot Springs. Fisher fired 73-70143; Roachell had 72-75147.

In the Bubba Smart Invitational at Pine Bluff Country Club, Chase Dixon took a two-stroke win over Christopher Stalnaker of Conway. Dixon shot 72-78150; Stalnaker was second at 72-80152. Chris Cardin of Conway shot 86-81167.

Timothy Stalknaker of Conway finished 18th in the boys 14-15 age division with 87-100187.

In the Joe Boone Memorial at Jonesboro Country Club, Landon Hearnes of Mayflower took an 11-stroke win in the 12-13 boys division with rounds of 75-73148. Noah Tullos of Paragould finished second at 81-78159.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

In early standings for the various ASGA Player of the Year awards, several local golfers are in contention.

Conway's Lyle Middleton is fifth in the amateur standings, updated through the Summit Bank Classic May 31-June 1. Middleton, the athletic director at Central Baptist College, has 110 points. Allen McFerran of Fort Smith leads with 220. Kirk Brown, a former University of Central Arkansas golfer from Mountain Home, is 13th with 76 points.

In the mid-senior race, Tim Walley of White Hall leads with 326 points. Jay Fox of Little Rock, executive director of the ASGA and a former UCA golfer, is second at 320. Fox will enter the UCA Sports Hall of Fame in September. Other locals on the mid-senior list are Randy Lloyd of Conway, 12th with 61 points; Carter Rickman of Greenbrier, 16th with 53 points; and Greg Dunseath of Conway, 20th with 40 points.

Oscar Taylor of Hot Springs leads the senior standings with 347 points. Stan Lee, a former UCA golfer from Heber Springs, is fourth with 250 points after winning the ASGA Senior Match Play Championship. Doug Odom of Greenbrier is 40th with 10 points.

There are no locals on the senior list. Don White of Sparkman leads with 455 points.

The latest junior standings include only the first tournament of the year, the Greater Little Rock Junior Championship. Moix of Conway has 60 points and is second to Adam Carpenter of Little Rock (80). SRoachell is second in the girls race with 60 points to Fisher's 80.

UPCOMING ASGA EVENTS

Next on the Arkansas State Golf Association designated schedule is the ASGA Mountain Valley Junior Match Play (designated for boys and girls) at Foxwood Country Club in Jacksonville June 16-19; the K.B. Rand at Searcy Country Club (amateurs, mid-seniors, seniors and super-seniors) June 21-22; qualifying for the USGA Public Links Championship at Pine Bluff Country Club June 23 (amateurs); the ASGA Parent-Child Championship at Foxwood CC in Jacksonville June 23; qualifying for the U.S. Junior Boys Championship at Hot Springs Country Club and for the U.S. Junior Girls at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock, both June 25; the Greers Ferry Lake Junior Invitational (boys and girls) at Red Apple CC in Heber Springs June 26-27; the Hurricane Men's Stroke at Bryant (amateurs, mid-seniors, seniors and super-seniors) June 28-29; the Paradise Valley Men's Stroke at Fayetteville (amateurs and seniors), also June 28-29; and the Trusted Choice Big "I" State Championship (boys and girls) at RidgePointe CC in Jonesboro July 1-2.

See the ASGA's Web site at www.asga.org for entry information.

(Golf writer Donna Lampkin Stephens may be reached at donnaken@mac.com).